(CNSNews.com) -- Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said the United States does not have to look beyond its own borders to meet its energy needs because the country is “blessed” by God with an abundance of resources.

“Here’s the deal, we are an energy rich nation,” Rubio said in a speech on Thursday at the 2012 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, D.C.

The problem, Rubio said, is regulations and other impediments to using those resources, a problem that “common sense” conservatism can resolve.

“Well, yes, we have clean air and we have clean water, but we also have some sanity,” Rubio said, adding that regulatory reform is a conservative principle.

Rubio said that the United States should lead the way when it comes to new technologies and energy efficiency, but it should not limit the development and use of resources that already exist.

“In the meantime, why would we tie our own hands behind our back if we are competing with other economies?” he said. “You know, the Chinese will drill a hole anywhere they can get their hands on.”

“Now I’m not saying we have to be like them, but I’m saying we’re an energy rich country and conservatism, which is grounded in common sense, says that if you’re an energy rich country you need to use the energy that God has blessed your nation with,” Rubio said.

The senator further said that the Obama administration does not have an energy policy but instead “has energy politics.”